


Let's Sneak Out

by foxxick



Category: Persona 4, Persona Series
Genre: Awkward Flirting, Drabble, First Kiss, Fluff, Internalized Homophobia, Interrupting Dojima, Late Night Conversations, M/M, Swimming, a little bit of angst but shhh, and just all around gay, because it's yosuke, samegawa is the place for gay, still a little bit of, this was halfway to becoming a hypothermia fic, yu is leaving inaba and yosuke is upset about losing his partner
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-06-20
Updated: 2018-06-20
Packaged: 2019-05-25 20:03:35
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,399
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14984570
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/foxxick/pseuds/foxxick
Summary: Nights are meant for sleeping. Early mornings are meant for sneaking out with your partner.





	Let's Sneak Out

_Tap, tap, tap._

Yu blinked blearily, muted light casting in from a street light outside his window.

"Must be a bird..." he muttered to himself, slinging an arm over his face, to obscure the light.

_Tap, tap, tap._

He cracked an eye open, glancing from his alarm clock to his open window. The red LED numbers read 2:39. There was a figure on the roof.

Yu jumped to his feet, hands fumbling for his katana, stashed beneath the futon. The figure held its hands up in surrender, seemingly a bit surprised by the way it scrambled back quite a ways.

"Whoa, whoa! It's me!"

"Yosuke?" Yu whispered, lowering his sword and cocking an eyebrow in disbelief. "How did you get up there?"

He appeared to find amusement in Yu's confusion. "I climbed up the side of the house," he replied, motioning to a part of the house obscured by the curtains. "It wasn't all that difficult, especially compared to the stuff we've had to do over the past few months."

Yu snorted. "You wouldn't be saying that if my uncle had caught you scaling his house." He set the katana down and removed the inner screen on the window.

Yosuke clambered into his room and dropped down onto the couch below. "Why are you even here?"

Yosuke shrugged, acting as if he hadn't just crawled in the second story window of his best friend's house. "I texted you earlier. You didn't answer, so I figured I might as well ask you in person."

"Was it so important you couldn't wait until tomorrow to ask me?" Yu whispered, sounding utterly exasperated.

Yosuke thought for a moment, a quizzical expression on his face, forefinger tapping his chin in a cartoonish display. His eyes finally caught Yu's, and his face burst into a grin. "Wanna come for a walk with me?"

Yu sighed deeply, fingers rubbing at his temples in an exaggerated display of annoyance. "Why would I do that?" he asked, kicking his katana under the bed sheets.

Another wide grin. "C'mon, it'll be fun!"

"Yeah, yeah, I've heard that before. What's it this time? Did Teddie talk you into doing something weird? I don't want to be forcibly made to laugh again, Yosuke; once was enough." He recalled how his friends had tried everything to get him to laugh openly in front of them, and how - while he had admittedly had fun at the time - he had been unable to properly fight for weeks afterwards without laughing until he hurt.

Yosuke grabbed Yu's wrist, standing on the couch and pulling him in the direction of the open window. "No one is waiting to mess with you; I promise. I just want to go for a walk."

He seemed sincere enough, Yu supposed. "Alright. Lead the way, captain."

After a slight pause in which Yosuke shot a glare at his partner, he climbed up and out the window, Yu following close behind. They carefully made their way down the side of the house, Yosuke accidentally knocking over a trash can in the process, which forced them to make a run for it in case Dojima heard it and decided to investigate.

Out of breath, but laughing nonetheless, the two boys fell into step and made their way to the riverbank. The moon was nearly full, and it cast a haunting light on their surroundings.

"Alright," Yu started, finally able to speak at normal volume, "What is it you really dragged me out here for?"

Yosuke stumbled as he attempted to walk backwards, facing Yu. "I was just... I dunno, I guess I just wanted to go for a walk?" He rubbed at his neck and quickly turned away, walking faster and putting distance between himself and Yu. "Geez, I'm sorry man, I totally just dragged you out here for nothing..."

Yu chuckled, smiling reassuringly despite knowing Yosuke wasn't looking his way. "I don't mind; it's a nice night for a walk." He was beyond exhausted, but he figured he could catch up on his sleep in class if it came to that. It was evident that Yosuke had been planning to say something, and Yu had a feeling it was weighing on him more than he let on.

When they reached the riverbank, they found it muddy from the excessive rain they'd had a few days prior. Despite this, Yosuke had run down to the water's edge, spraying muddy water up behind him with each footfall, and practically threw himself into the river. Yu watched from the top of the hill in amusement, carefully removing his shoes and making his way down to join Yosuke. Yu waded in to his calves, feeling the pull of the current around his legs.

"C'mon partner!" Yosuke called, grinning widely and waving him over.

Yu rolled his eyes, but removed his jacket anyways, carefully placing it near his shoes and socks on the dock before swimming to the middle of the river where Yosuke was.

The water was about as cold as you'd expect, being the middle of September, but it didn't really bother either of the boys all too much - At least until they decided to get out.

Yosuke's teeth chattered, and he wrapped his arms around himself, his sopping wet hoodie not doing much to keep him warm. "I-I'm s-starting t-t-to think th-this m-might not have b-been a good idea," Yosuke managed to say, joining Yu as he slipped his shoes back on.

"Y-you don't always m-make the b-best decisions," Yu replied, stripping off his wet pajama shirt and replacing it with his blessedly dry jacket. "That's w-why I'm th-the leader."

Yosuke pouted, eyeing Yu's jacket enviously.

"I'm not giving you my jacket, Yosuke."

"Aww, c-come on p-partner!" he wailed, unwrapping his arms from his torso to grasp at Yu's arm. "It's f-freezing!"

"You're the one who ran in there in your clothes!" Yu yelled, scrambling backwards, away from his dripping-wet friend.

Yosuke looked at the ground dejectedly. He pulled his arms back around himself and rubbed at them as if trying to warm up.

Even though Yu knew exactly what Yosuke was trying to do, he couldn't help feeling sorry for him.

"Fine." he conceded, holding his jacket open with a defeated sigh.

Yosuke smirked as he rung out his soaked hoodie. He knew his leader wouldn't be able to resist helping him. It made him feel a bit guilty, taking advantage of Yu's amicable nature, but Yu didn't seem to mind too much.

He held the edge of Yu's jacket around them - ignoring the sensation of Yu's bare skin against his own - and fell into step with his partner.  
Inaba was different at night. Quiet. No one would expect a string of serial murders in a town as seemingly peaceful as this.

"So, partner... You leave for Tokyo again in the spring, huh? Do you think the case'll be solved by then?"

Yosuke's voice shook, a result of both the coldness in his body and the sudden weariness he felt.

"I don't know." Yu replied, gazing up at the starry sky above them. "But I'm sure you can all handle it after I'm gone. We've put together a great team." His eyes shone with an otherworldly glow. The stars had never been this visible in the city.

Yosuke's fingers fumbled at his side for something to grab onto. He settled on picking at the seam of his pocket, where a thread had come loose. "Yeah... Right."

"You don't have to be my replacement." Yu's voice was quiet, just barely audible over the noise of rustling leaves. He spoke again, louder this time. "I'm sure Chie or Yukiko could take over."

Yosuke's knuckles brushed over the back of Yu's hand, and he shivered involuntarily. "I don't think that's a good idea either."

Yu pursed his lips. "I can't stay here forever. As much as I want to see this through, I've got to go home to my family." He curls his index finger around Yosuke's, stopping him from picking at the loose thread and initiating an uncharacteristically affectionate gesture. Yosuke freezes for a moment, and Yu feels him stiffen at the touch, but after a short while, he hooked two of his fingers around Yu's.

Yosuke pushed away the realization that they were technically holding hands in public, though he felt his cheeks growing warmer at the thought. Yu had always been visibly uncomfortable and would usually shy away from Rise's hugs and attempts at holding his hand. Yosuke supposes he shouldn't be entirely surprised, though, considering Yu had once hugged him while he was crying over Saki - it had been incredibly stiff and awkward, but Yosuke had appreciated it nonetheless.

It was sort of the same as the weird, almost hand holding they were doing now. Not quite right, but still comforting in a strange way.

"I don't want you to leave." Yosuke says, as they near the Dojima residence. It had slipped out before Yosuke was fully aware of the implications his words had, but it was somewhat of a relief to have them off his chest at the same time.

Yu stared at him. His gaze was full of emotions, carefully hidden behind a mask. Yosuke recognized a few, even with the attempt at hiding them. Sadness. Pity. Fondness. Longing.

Every one of Yosuke's fingers brushed against a match of Yu's as he suddenly grasped Yosuke's hand tightly. Yosuke's breath hitched, feeling butterflies in his stomach.

They were close now; so close Yosuke could see all of the flecks of colour in Yu's eyes. To say he was uncomfortable would be an understatement. His hand felt horribly sweaty, and he attempted to pull it out of Yu's grip.

Unfortunately for Yosuke - whose hand currently felt less like a hand and more like a wet noodle - Yu's grip kept his hand in place. "Yu, let go of my hand." Yosuke said through gritted teeth. His head was swimming, as if his brain was still back at the riverbank. The pressure on his hand was so great now that it had begun to hurt.

Something in his tone seemed to snap Yu out of it, and he hurriedly relinquished his grip on Yosuke's hand.  
Yosuke pulled Yu's jacket closer around himself. They had stopped under a tree not far from the Dojimas' house. Yu was tense, his hands balled into fists at his side.

"I'm sorry." He finally said, not meeting Yosuke's eyes.

Yosuke didn't dare reply. He swallowed thickly and squeezed both his eyes and his hands shut tightly, digging his fingernails into his palms, seeing rainbows of colour flash across his eyelids.

"I don't want to leave either, Yosuke... I..." Yu trailed off.

"I wanted to go for a walk with you." Yosuke said lamely. _God dammit. Why did he suddenly feel so tired...?_ "I just... I wanted to hang out with you without anyone else to compete for your attention for once." _Oh man, that sounds so stupid..._ "I-I uh... um... I just kind of realized I'll miss you when you're gone and that's... Not really something I've ever felt before. I know this is completely stupid and we have other stuff to worry about right now but I... I really like you, okay? Like, I can't explain it, but I really wanted to hold your hand... And now I feel totally stupid and I just want to crawl under a rock and die so please don't think you need to apologize because I really did want you to kiss me just now."

Yosuke stopped, seeing Yu's eyes widen, and he slaps a hand over his mouth, realizing what he had just said. "I-I mean uh..! It's late let's just--" He struggles to pull his arm out of Yu's jacket sleeve, but is caught before he can go anywhere.

"Yosuke!" Yu yellsed, his voice sounding strangled and significantly higher in pitch than normal, "W-wait a second!"

Yosuke groaned. "Please just let me go, partner, I need to go die of embarrassment somewhere..." His face wass a deep red, visible even in the darkness of the night.

"I like you too, Yosuke!" Yu admitted, very loudly. He looked around hurriedly and blusheed all the way to his ears.

"Yeah, I know that dipshit!" Yosuke hissed, still trying to wriggle free of Yu's grasp.

Just as he had broken one arm free, another grabbed his shoulder. He turned to look at Yu, immediately regretting the decision as he took in the flustered look occupying his friend's face.

Surprising even himself, he grasped Yu's hand in his own and leaned in close. His momentum carried him forward faster than he had meant it to and he nearly collided with Yu's face. They were back where they'd been only a few moments earlier.

Yosuke bit his lip, staring hard into Yu's eyes. This was the part where something was supposed to happen... right? Since he had been the one to make a move this time, he supposed he should be the one to... well...

He turned away and released a breath he hadn't realized he'd been holding. He couldn't do it.

Maybe it was the fact that they were in public, and that someone could see them at any moment. Maybe he was just too nervous. Maybe he didn't like Yu after all.

Yosuke sunk to the ground, letting out a frustrated groan as he did so. His mind was a complete mess, and no matter what he did, it seemed like he had an inner voice screaming at him to stop. _Don't kiss him! Kiss him! Get out of here; run! Say something, idiot!_

"Yosuke..." Yu's voice sounded distant. He's crouched in front of Yosuke. His arms rested on his knees. His hand brushed against Yosuke's leg.

"I called you out here to tell you how I felt..." Yosuke whispered, "But now I don't even know how I feel myself..."

Again, he felt Yu's fingers take hold of his own. Slowly. Cautiously.

Yu nodded. He appeared quite solemn, despite the high energy of their earlier conversation. "It's late, we should be getting back soon. I don't want Dojima to be suspicious of me if he finds out I've snuck out at night."

He helped Yosuke to his feet, then dropped all but two fingers that still gingerly keep hold of Yosuke's hand.

In a way, despite being utterly ridiculous in practice, the noncommittal, partial hand-holding felt more natural to Yosuke, and did more to put him at ease. He supposed it made sense; after all, it was significantly less noticeable and could be broken at a moment's notice.

Yu wrapped his jacket around Yosuke's shoulders once again, and they continued their walk back to the Dojimas'.

"There's no rush." Yu mumbled, his voice muffled by the collar of his jacket.

Yosuke said nothing for a long while, choosing to stare down at his soaked sneakers instead. "I'm just not good at this... whole thing."

Yu nodded again. "We'll figure it out." He shoots a weary smile at Yosuke, earning a small, tentative smile in return.

When they at last reach the house, Yu drops Yosuke's hand, then pulls his arm out of his jacket sleeve.

"I can't take this!" Yosuke whispered, standing dumbstruck with half of Yu's jacket draped off of him. "What about tomorrow?"

Yu had already climbed halfway up the front of the house by the time he answers. "Just bring it with you and give it to me at school. You need it more than I do now."

"Yu! Hold on a- Wait!" He watched Yu disappear into his bedroom, and groaned in annoyance. With a string of muttered curses, he quickly scales the house - knocking the trash can over once again - and clambered into the window for the second time that night. "At least take my sweater; it should be dry by the morning."

It's still sopping, but Yu appreciates the thought. If he's being honest, walking halfway to school without his jacket sounds kind of shitty, but he's sure it'll be warmer then than it is tonight, and he doesn't want Yosuke catching a cold.

Yosuke stripped off his sweater, pulling his shirt off with it, and handed the bundle of clothes to Yu. "Thanks again, Yu, even if it's kind of my fault for being stupid, I uh..." He trailed off. It's not like he hasn't seen Yu shirtless before, but something about the way his bedroom lamp illuminates his pale skin, and his mussed up, slightly damp hair falls over his face is just so... breathtaking, that Yosuke couldn't help but stare. It felt different. More intimate.

Yu set his mouth into a cocky smirk. "Like what you see?"

"Y-yes actually?" Yosuke squeaked.

Yu snorted, his eyes crinkled with mirth as he took in Yosuke's disheveled appearance. "Oh man, too bad I can't say the same right now."

His laughter immediately breaks the tension that had been building between them, and Yosuke shook his head, snapping himself back to reality. "You moron! You're gonna wake up your uncle!"

Stifling his laughter, Yu grabbed the soggy sweater from Yosuke and shook it in his direction. It all happened so fast that Yosuke had no time to react and dodge the flurry of water droplets sent his way, instead just standing there and enduring it. "I'm regretting coming up here more by the second," he groaned.

"At least you got to see me shirtless." Yu teased, watching as Yosuke's cheeks heat up again.

"I-I've seen you shirtless before, you ass! And don't act like it was a favor or something, that's just creepy!" Yosuke sputtered, aggressively tugging on Yu's jacket and turning to leave. "Now go back to sleep before your uncle catches us!"

As he was climbing over the couch to get to the window, he felt a hand around his wrist, and is tugged back, away from the window. When he turns back around to voice his annoyance, however, he's suddenly face to face with Yu again. "C-come on, I thought we-"

His eyes are warm. Like nothing he's ever seen before. There's a look of pure affection in Yu's eyes. It's the cherry on top that melts Yosuke's entire resolve, and before he knows it, their lips meet. He's kissing Yu Narukami. Momentary panic sets in, and he almost breaks away, but Yu's hands are in his hair, and their chests are pressed together, and suddenly the only thing Yosuke knows is the feel of Yu Narukami, and nothing else.

He pushed Yu down on the couch and kissed him deeper, his whole body tingling like he'd been electrocuted. His hands ran up Yu's back and started tugging at his unbelievably soft, perfect hair. Yu let out a muffled moan, and Yosuke laughed against his mouth. "Honestly, partner, I never took you for the type..."

The door slammed open.

The two boys separated with a jolt, and Yosuke barely caught a glimpse of who it was before he had clambered out onto the roof. Either one of the two other residents would be a bad option.

"H-Hanamura? What are you-!" Dojima sputtered, his jaw dropped, staring from the lanky figure, now on his roof, to his nephew, disheveled and laughing on the couch.

"Sorry, Dojima-san; I kept telling him to shut up, but he wouldn't listen!" Yosuke called back, now bolting down the street in front of the house.

"Get back here! Y-you could have broken my window!" He turned to Yu, after conceding that Yosuke was finally out of earshot. "For the love of- I thought we were being robbed!" He dropped the baseball bat he'd been holding and sank to the floor, but his eyes were trained on the glinting object near Yu's futon.

Yu cleared his throat, trying to contain his laughter. "I had it covered if anything got out of hand," he smirked, kicking away the katana and shooing his uncle out of the room.

When he was alone in his room once again, Yu noticed that in his haste to leave, Yosuke had forgotten to take the jacket with him. Even if it was only for a little while longer, Yu knew he'd every last minute of his remaining time in Inaba - especially if nights like tonight were what he had to look forward to.

As long as he didn't have to deal with a sick Yosuke.

**Author's Note:**

> Hellllllooooo, and thank you for enduring this fic! I started this months ago and finally got it finished, but honestly this was my least favourite fic I wrote, so there was a WHOLE LOT of heavy editing to be done by the end of it. Anyways, I hope I'm not the only one who consistently looks at Yu's windows in his room and thinks "man, that's be really easy to sneak out of", because it's been on my mind since I started playing P4, haha.


End file.
